Reactive pathways of synthetic forsterite and Mg/Ni-serpentine: Insights into incipient dissolution and carbonation

Mattia Corti, Daniela D’Alessio, Mara Murri, Giancarlo Capitani, Marcello Campione , Nadia Malaspina

Excited to share that our new paper, “Reactive pathways of synthetic forsterite and Mg/Ni-serpentine: Insights into incipient dissolution and carbonation”, has just been published.
This work explores how nanocrystalline forsterite and Mg–Ni serpentines dissolve and carbonate under mild hydrothermal conditions, a key step toward efficient mineral carbonation for long-term CO2 sequestration.
By comparing synthetic Mg- and Ni-endmembers, we unravel how composition, structure, and morphology control reactivity: while forsterite and Mg-serpentine readily release Mg and form hydrated Mg-carbonates, Ni-serpentine remains remarkably inert, locking Ni within its structure.
These findings open new perspectives for both carbon storage technologies and critical metal recovery.
Grateful for the support of Fondazione Cariplo, Regione Lombardia and all collaborators involved in this work.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883292725003737